Gothic 3 - If you live outside of Germany, chances are you aren't too familiar with the early games of the Gothic series, just the buggy Oblivion wannabe that was the 3rd installment. Well in Germany Gothic 1 and 2 are held in a similar regard that we hold the Baldur's Gate series. It is a highly acclaimed open world RPG that is kept in a very confined space, making the experience incredibly deep. It accomplishing with clever scripting what Oblivion utterly failed to do with AI in making a living and believable world that was still intriguing. The games had built up to a crescendo in Gothic 2, and Gothic 3 promised to provide an epic finale to a distant conflict that had been alluded to from the very beginning of the first. Instead, we got a shallow, buggy mess. For shame.
Final Fantasy XIII - I was definitely hyped for Final Fantasy XII, and while scouring for a last bit of information during the final E3 before that game's release, I noticed they had an announcement trailer for XIII. "WTF, XII isn't even out!" I said. I watched the trailer, and my mind was blown out of my skull and all over the walls. The game they were advertising looked like the coolest thing ever made. I waited in anticipation, greedily sipping down information whenever it rarely showed its face. I finally started playing the game recently and... well it's just okay. Objectively, I can't say that it's horrible, but based on all that hype it sure does feel like it. X was good, but started a trend toward some very silly storytelling ideas, and XIII seems to be its fully waxed appearance. From now on, I'll be wary before playing another Kitase Final Fantasy.
The Old Republic Announcement - Bioware has good writers, but the writers at the former Black Isle team Obsidian make Bioware's talent look like Twilard fan fiction writers. This was abundantly clear not only in the difference between Planescape: Torment and Baldur's Gate, but moreso in the difference between Kotor and Kotor 2. Same franchise, but one team made Star Wars in its purest form, flaws and all. The other team created a dark experience so compelling that it gave me the closest feelings I had when watching the Empire Strikes Back for the first time. Almost eerie. The best thing about the game though was that they left you in suspense for a looming threat even more deadly than the Sith Lords you spent the entire game fighting. However, after the long wait we got.... nothing. Absolutely nothing. Despite financial success, LucasArts was apparently displeased with the mixed reactions of the fans, so they didn't let Obsidian use the license again. However, after what felt like an eternity of waiting, we were told that we were about to get big news for the universe of the Old Republic. I was stoked to say the least, as I was certain that Obsidian was finally getting the license back to make a final Kotor installment on the 360. Instead... they announced an MMO.
Many other disappointments this year, most coming from the pretty drastic changes in gaming and the stories that are being told currently, but there have also been a good deal of surprises and triumphs. In my opinion, those outnumber the disappointments and failures this year, making it a great decade overall.
Final Fantasy XIII - I was definitely hyped for Final Fantasy XII, and while scouring for a last bit of information during the final E3 before that game's release, I noticed they had an announcement trailer for XIII. "WTF, XII isn't even out!" I said. I watched the trailer, and my mind was blown out of my skull and all over the walls. The game they were advertising looked like the coolest thing ever made. I waited in anticipation, greedily sipping down information whenever it rarely showed its face. I finally started playing the game recently and... well it's just okay. Objectively, I can't say that it's horrible, but based on all that hype it sure does feel like it. X was good, but started a trend toward some very silly storytelling ideas, and XIII seems to be its fully waxed appearance. From now on, I'll be wary before playing another Kitase Final Fantasy.
The Old Republic Announcement - Bioware has good writers, but the writers at the former Black Isle team Obsidian make Bioware's talent look like Twilard fan fiction writers. This was abundantly clear not only in the difference between Planescape: Torment and Baldur's Gate, but moreso in the difference between Kotor and Kotor 2. Same franchise, but one team made Star Wars in its purest form, flaws and all. The other team created a dark experience so compelling that it gave me the closest feelings I had when watching the Empire Strikes Back for the first time. Almost eerie. The best thing about the game though was that they left you in suspense for a looming threat even more deadly than the Sith Lords you spent the entire game fighting. However, after the long wait we got.... nothing. Absolutely nothing. Despite financial success, LucasArts was apparently displeased with the mixed reactions of the fans, so they didn't let Obsidian use the license again. However, after what felt like an eternity of waiting, we were told that we were about to get big news for the universe of the Old Republic. I was stoked to say the least, as I was certain that Obsidian was finally getting the license back to make a final Kotor installment on the 360. Instead... they announced an MMO.
Many other disappointments this year, most coming from the pretty drastic changes in gaming and the stories that are being told currently, but there have also been a good deal of surprises and triumphs. In my opinion, those outnumber the disappointments and failures this year, making it a great decade overall.
